Middle School Debate Excels at Winter Classic

St. Margaret’s Middle School debate team performed well at the Orange County Debate League Winter Classic Tournament last week at Buena Park Junior High.

The team of Henry Chai-Onn, Charles Ihara and Sophia Karahalios placed 19^th out of 89 teams, and finished with a 3-1 record. Other Tartans participating were Tanner Harden, Jake Reeves, Kian Vargo, Alex Kenny, Mark Gonzalez and Sophia Bunnell. Combined, St. Margaret’s students went 8-4 on the day.

St. Margaret’s was one of 20 schools represented at the tournament. Students debated issues such as whether government officials should release their financial information, whether no-kill animal shelters do more good than harm, and whether standardized tests should be part of the college admissions process.

“Our Tartan debaters were very excited, as this was the best showing we’ve had since we started the team last year,” said Darla Magana, who co-coaches the team with Rebecca Tufo.

The St. Margaret’s Middle School debate team is in its second year. Team members come together Monday after school to do research, build arguments, and practice speaking. The team participates in several tournaments a year as part of the Orange County Debate League.